PARLIAMENTARY INTERVENTIONS ON LABOR MATTERS
Ever since the Lok Sabha elections, the new Parliament has been the site of important interventions by the India Bloc MPs. The CPI-ML MPs Com. Rajaram Singh and Com. Sudama Prasad have led the way in raising a range of issues related to Adani’s corruption, one-nation one-elections, Islamophobic violence and so on. Labour matters have been raised regularly by our MPs – both on the floor of the Parliament, as well as through the Standing Committees.
Questions in the Parliament
It was questioned whether the government is cognizant of the fact that scheme workers including ASHA, Anganwadi, and Mid-Day Meal workers, continue to carry out and implement central government programs across the country under harsh working conditions and extreme low wages. Why can’t the government regularize the scheme workers as central government employees to ensure fair treatment, to recognize them formally as “workers”, to give them wages on par with central government employees and to declare central minimum wages specific to scheme workers, as per the recommendations of the previous Indian Labour Conferences (ILC).
The Supreme Court has repeatedly held that the system of contract labour is nothing but an improved form of bonded labour and that it is nothing but a new technique of subterfuge adopted by employers in recent years. Still, no legislation has been enacted to confer permanent status to workmen who have been in continuous service (whether daily wage, contract or casual) for a period of 180 days in a period of 12 months. The government was asked to narrate their plan to pass a legislation for regularisation of irregular workers.
The government was questioned about the steps to ensure the compliance with the principle of equal pay for equal work as directed by the Supreme Court in State of Punjab vs Jagjit Singh case.
Our MPs also demanded the government to put forward a plan to stop the widespread violation across sectors (including the public sector) of the fundamental right to pay parity for the same and similar work done by contract/casual/daily wage worker on par with permanent workers.
The government was insisted to hold the Indian Labour conferences periodically which is not held since 2017. The government was also questioned to share the reasons for not holding ILCs and the reasons for bypassing the supreme tripartite body of the country involving all stakeholders.
The legitimacy of legislation of the Labour Codes including The Code on Wages, 2019, The code on Social Security, 2020 etc, without consulting ILC was also questioned.
In light of the constitutional guarantee of the right to organize and collectivize [Article 19(1)(c)], it was questioned if the government was considering the enactment of any legislation for mandating the recognition of trade unions.
The government’s efforts to enumerate the number of gig and platform workers in India, its measures to ensure minimum wage, 8 hours of work, payment of overtime, insurance, pensions for the growing gig and platform workers, etc., was also underlined.
Despite the fact that the section 3 of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 mandates the fixing of minimum rates of wages and the revision of the basic wages component at a maximum of five years. However, the revision of basic rates of minimum wages under section 3 (1) (b) is still pending since 2017 when the last revision of rates has happened. Hence, the government was questioned the reasons for nonrevision of the rates since 2017.
The government was also asked to reveal the status of the complaint by the All-Assam Contractor Workers Union to ensure minimum wages to the workers of Chabua Air Force Station Dibrugarh, Assam. The government’s plan to for not paying minimum wages was also questioned. Additionally, the government was asked to explain future steps to ensure minimum wages to the workers employed in all central govt associated holdings.
Standing Committee on Labour, Textiles and Skill Development
Besides the floor of the Parliament, the CPI-ML MPs have also used the Standing Committees to great effect.
Com. Rajaram Singh is part of the Standing Committee on Labor, Textiles and Skill Development. Following are the interventions made by him in the Standing Committee meetings through a series of letters outlining important trade union demands.
Reiterating Core Demands of Workers
1. Demanding a revision of the basic rates of minimum wages under Section 3(1)(b) of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948.
2. Demanding action against the illegal retrenchment of Safai Karmacharis in CABS – DRDO, Bengaluru for complaining against extortion.
3. Demanding action against the illegal retrenchment of workers in M/s ITI Ltd. Falling under the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications.
4. Demanding action against the violation of basic rights of workers in Chhabua Airforce Station Dibrugarh.
Crisis in Jute Industry
1. Demanding full monitoring and implementation of the Jute Packaging Materials Act (JPMA), Jute and Textiles Control Order (JTCO) and the Jute Packaging Mandatory Act, 1987.
2. Demanding necessary action to prevent the import of jute from Bangladesh through illegal route.
3. Fixing of MSP for jute as per the formula of the Swaminathan Commission.
4. Increase in direct purchase of jute from jute cultivators by JCI.
5. Instructing FCI and state procurement agencies to pack food grains only in jute bags in the Kharif and Rabi seasons and to place orders on time.
6. Revision of the existing norms of 20% for packaging of sugar during the current year.
Demands from Movements (19 November 2024)
1. Awarding the legitimate bonus to workers in JNU.
2. Forwarding the key demands of the Scheme Workers’ Union affiliated to AICCTU
3. Demanding the immediate convening of the Indian Labour Conference
4. Demanding a reconsideration of the Employment-Linked Incentives Scheme on the basis of the suggestions provided by the central trade unions.
Demands Related to Railways
The following are some of the demands related to the needs of the working people in their own constituencies have been made by the MPs, through letters to the railway minister:
1. Reiteration of the 15-year-old demand for better connectivity between Diyaranchal and South Bihar, and between the Budhha circuit and around 12 districts surrounding it, through a rail line connecting Dehri, Nasriganj, Karakat, Gorari Vikramganj, Gosaldih, Dhedgaon Koath, Bhavnaul, Paramdih, Bhatauli, Nawanagar, Katiknar, Kesath, Kuransarai, Dumraon, Simri, Niyazipur, Gangauli, and Balia.
2. Demand for the speeding up the construction of Dalmianagar Dehri rail factory, the Aurangabad- Bihta rail line, and the railway bridge at Dehri (with special attention to the quality of construction).
3. Reinstatement of rail stoppages which were abolished during the coronavirus pandemic.
4. Stoppages of the following trains at Dehri: 11427/28, 12937/38, 11357/58, 12349/50, 20887/88, 12323/24, 22499/50, 18427/28, 12371/72.
5. Stoppage of Palamau Express, Ranchi-Varanasi Intercity Express and other important trains at Ankroha, stoppage of 21893 Vande Bharat (Tata- Patna) and 12389/90 Gaya Chennai Express at Anugraha Narayan Road, stoppage of Arah-Ranchi Intercity at Bickramgunj.
Intervention Regarding Working Hours
Following L&T Chairman SN Subrahmanyan's remarks that he wished employees to work on Sundays, Com. Raja Ram Singh on 10 January 2025 wrote to Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya asking him to penalise any violation of laws on working hours in offices. In a letter to the labour minister, Singh also quoted a statement by Infosys Co-founder Narayana Murthy advocating a 70-hour workweek, and others like Bhavish Aggarwal of Ola and Sajjan Jindal of Jindal Steel Works publicly supporting such a proposal.
“Several studies have linked long working shifts to a negative impact on general health, including problems with cognitive anxiety, musculoskeletal disorders, sleep disturbance, and stress,” wrote Com. Rajaram Singh in his letter to the Minister.